


Games and Fun

by quiet__tiger



Category: Batman (Comics)
Genre: First Kiss, Heatwave, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-17
Updated: 2017-04-17
Packaged: 2018-10-19 22:56:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10649793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quiet__tiger/pseuds/quiet__tiger
Summary: Tim agrees to play in the heat, and it brings him and Dick closer together.





	Games and Fun

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: "Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight."
> 
> Originally posted to Livejournal Jul. 24th, 2013.

As much as Tim loved Dick—really, truly loved him, and not in a brotherly, family way—sometimes the acrobat and his devilishly handsome good looks drove him nuts. Gotham was suffering the kind of heat wave where even sitting still meant people were sweating buckets, let alone doing something that involved moving. The air was hot and oppressive, and there were warnings for the elderly to stay inside or seek cooler locations.

And of course Dick wanted to play grapple tag throughout the city, swinging in between buildings and over the streets and basically working up a disgusting level of sweat that made his costume damp and itchy.

“But there’s no crime, so we won’t be interrupted, and we’ll still be a presence to show people that the heat doesn’t affect us awesome vigilantes.”

“Uh huh.” But Tim had never been good at saying no to Dick, especially when he looked so earnest and sweet, and really only wanted to play.

“Come on. It’ll be fun.”

“Uh huh.” But this time it was less skeptical and reluctant-sounding, and it was clear Dick knew he’d won.

Dick poked him in the forehead. “You’re it!” Then he was off, grapple line shot around a flagpole across the street.

So Tim gave chase, cape fluttering limply in the thick air as he tried to catch up with Dick. But the acrobat had the advantage of a head start, more skill and experience, and seemingly being unaffected by the heat.

Finally Tim was able to properly guess his next move, and surprised Dick on a blind turn around a high-end apartment building. He swung to meet Dick and wrapped his legs around him, both of them locked together in midair. “Gotcha. You’re it.”

“Game on, little brother.” Grinning, Dick twisted away out of Tim’s grip, and Tim retracted the wire on his grapple so he could get a head start on running from Dick.

Swinging from him. Whatever.

Tim managed to get as far as Gotham University before he almost tripped over Dick while running along a roof. Dick had been standing in a shadow and Tim didn’t even see him as he scanned the building across the alley to judge how far away it was. As he ran by Dick whispered, “Boo!” and Tim lost his footing, running jaggedly before he caught his balance.

“Jerk.”

“Creep.”

Sweat pouring down his brow—the full face cowl was a terrible, terrible idea—and from what he could feel, his back, chest, and legs, Tim asked, “Can we take a break? I need water.”

“Sure. Was going to suggest it myself.” Dick leaned down to pick up a bottle of water from near his feet, and Tim couldn’t help but wonder where he’d gotten it and how he’d had time to. “Drink.”

“Yessir.” The water was cold and delicious, and Tim tried not to chug it. He rubbed the bottle over his forehead, moaning slightly at the wonderful chill of it. “That’s good.”

“Come on.” Dick walked away back towards the direction Tim had come from, drinking from his own bottle of water.

“Where are we going?”

“Super secret spot.”

“’Kay…”

They took their time maneuvering around the campus, freshman dorm to science center to fitness center to upperclassman housing to… the library? Dick led Tim across the library’s roof and dropped down into a crevice between the buildings that Tim hadn’t seen. He slipped down and crouched down next to him, and realized the tiny space was _cool_.

The breeze was actually almost chilly on his sweaty body. “Are we in heaven?”

Dick snorted. “No. The shape of the buildings forms a wind tunnel right through this spot. And in the summer it pulls with it the air conditioning from the library, because that window up there,” Dick pointed, “is stuck open.”

“Did you find it that way or did you make it that way?”

“I’ll never tell. But the room on the other side is a long-forgotten storage closet on which the door lock is broken. From the inside.”

“Genius.”

“Had to do something to get away from the awful heat in the summer. It’s a decent study space.”

“It’s nice.” _Nice_? It was heaven in concrete form. No one could see them, the air was cold, and Tim just felt… like he could relax. “No one can see us, right? I can take off my mask?”

“Please do. Just looking at you is giving me heat rash.”

Tim was wrong… he hadn’t yet been in heaven until he’d taken off his cowl. Then his gauntlets, and hell, why not the top part of his costume? He felt goose bumps until his body adjusted to the new temperature, and then he just felt wonderful.

And if he was wedged more tightly towards Dick than he needed to be, well. Sometimes these things happened.

Dick stripped, too, until he was down to his bottoms and boots too. Tim tried not to stare at the way Dick’s nipples peaked in the cold air from the air conditioner, but he was tired, Dick was hot, and no one would be able to blame him.

Tim drank the rest of his water, and rested his head back against the wall. “This is nice. Awesome place to take a break. Did you come up here a lot?”

“When I really needed a place to get away. It’s amazing the secrets you can find when you travel by rooftop.”

“I’m glad I meandered towards the campus.”

“Kismet. If you didn’t come this way I was going to lead you here anyway the next time it was my turn to be chased.”

“We should play again when it’s not a million degrees out.”

“Maybe I’m tired of playing.”

“Huh?”

“Look at me.” Tim did, of course he did, Dick could tell him to leap off the roof without his gear and he’d do it. Well, probably not, but the sentiment was there. “I know the way you feel about me. You’re awesome at undercover work, but you’ve never been able to fool me.”

“Um…” Tim felt his face flush, and wondered if he should put his cowl back on. Maybe it would trick his brain into become eloquent again. “Uh.”

“No one else would have played with me tonight. No one else would have gone with me to that awful charity thing last month. No one else would do half the things I’ve asked of you. But you do them because you’re brave and kind, and can make the best out of rotten situations, and are loyal almost to a fault. Except when it comes to stealing Batmobiles, which seems to have become a hobby of yours…”

“Only when the Redbird was in the shop…” And when he wanted to look cool to his friends.

Grinning easily, Dick continued, “Regardless. You’ve been watching me for a while. I know this because I’ve been watching back. And I figure, since I’m the grown up here—” Tim snorted. “Since I’m the older one, I should finally just say something because it seemed like you were never going to.”

“Well. Ah. No. Likely not.” Because the odds of the earth swallowing him afterwards were too low.

“Why not?” There was enough light for Tim to see that Dick was genuinely curious.

“You’re _you_.” Clearly that wasn’t enough, based on the way Dick’s curiosity became confusion. “You know, hot, older, sexy, clever, gorgeous, unattainable... You know. _You_.”

“Oh wow, you’ve got it bad for me, if you’re that delusional.”

Angry, Tim opened his mouth to argue, but Dick raised his hand. “I didn’t mean it that way. But you take out the ‘older’ part and that all describes _you_.”

“Oh, please, I—”

“Hush.” Dick reached up with one hand, and cradled it around Tim’s cheek. Tim couldn’t help but lean into the touch. “You’ve been watching me for longer than I’ve been watching you, but I’ve been watching pretty darn closely. The way you move, the way you speak, the way you can piss Bruce off yet he still respects you… All of it is hot. I mean, look at you, gorgeous glistening body reacting to the heat and the way I just touch you so carefully…”

Dick traced a finger up Tim’s bare chest, making him twitch pleasantly at the contact, at _Dick_ and his fantasies coming true. “So… what now?”

“The breeze wasn’t the only reason I brought you here. I wanted to share this place with you, this hidden spot no one but me knows about. Where no prying eyes can see us.”

Tim realized Dick was talking about Bruce but also about Babs, who had eyes all over the city. But not here.

Unable to hold himself back, Tim twisted until he was in front of Dick, but since there wasn’t quite room for that he straddled Dick’s lap. Their first kiss wasn’t tentative, because who had time for that when Dick Grayson was offering himself to you?

Making out caused them to sweat all over again, but Tim couldn’t bring himself to care. Dick was _his_ and that meant _so much_ , more than he could ever hope to comprehend right now. Dick kept smiling into the kisses, like he couldn’t believe this was all happening either, and it made Tim even happier.

By the time they left that tiny alcove of cement above the library, they were just as sweaty as when they’d arrived, but for a much better reason.

Tim hated the heat, but he loved Dick Grayson. And with new memories of good things that resulted from the heat, well, at least he could enjoy the pleasant thoughts as a distraction the next time he sat around sweating while simply working at his computer.


End file.
